Objective
Students will apply mathematical skills by formulating hypothetical budgets; students will deepen their understanding of the unit's ideas through practical application.
Materials
I will need one transparency of the housing ads from the classified section of a local newspaper, 12 copies of the same ads for distribution to students, and one sample utility bill.
Procedures
- First, we will as a class discuss the apartments listed for rent in the newspaper by way of the transparency and select two that sound appealing. (10 minutes)
- Then, I will model how to create a basic budget, with students suggesting possible expenses when renting a new apartment. We will calculate both start-up costs and then an approximate monthly expense list, using the rent for the posted apartment and sample utility bill as starters. Then, we will discuss what kind of income would be needed in order to meet these monthly expenses.(20 Minutes)
- Then, I will have the students break into groups of 3 and give them copies of the classified section. They will then, as a group, come up with their own basic budget for the other selected apartment.(20 min)
- We will then rejoin as a class and compare budgets. Each group will share what they found and alter their budgets as needed, based on other groups' findings.(10 min)
Homework
The students will select an apartment that they think they would like to live in from the newspaper or an online listing service like Craig's List They will then prepare a full budget based on that apartment which will form the first half of their individual final project.
Assessment
Students will receive a grade for the unit based on their final project as well as their work on the Poetry Slam. Credit will be awarded both for accurate calculations and for effort put in. This is discussed in more depth in the Math Final Assessment page.
Literacy
The students will write in their journals about the activity. Do they think that the cost of housing is reasonable? Why is housing so expensive? What are some ways that people deal with the high price of housing?
Debriefing
As this is the introduction to their final project, it may take longer than expected to go through. This is fine, as there is more class time alloted to the project later in the unit. Students should be reassured that they will be given advice and assistance with the project.
